No one likes a know it all, especially in a business setting. A fixed mindset can even be dangerous to an organization. Those with this type of mindset struggle to admit their weakness/mistakes and cannot handle when they’re pointed out. They tend to have a “my way or the highway” attitude. They believe that abilities are innate and fixed. The opposite of this is a growth mindset, where one thinks that anything can be achieved through effort. It’s finding out what you don’t know and being open to new ideas as well as admitting your faults in order to better yourself. They believe that intelligence, abilities and talents are learnable and improvable. They welcome a good challenge because they understand that it can teach them something. A growth mindset is important in order to become a distinguished and influential leader.
We understand that some may want to adopt this way of thinking but may not be sure where to start. We comprised a list of ways to develop a growth mindset. Growth mindset values learning despite the risks more than others thinking that we know what we’re doing. Here are our tips.
1. Determine if you have a fixed mindset. If you already have a growth mindset then you just may need to improve on the thoughts that you already have. Listen to your inner dialogue to help you understand. For example, if you get some negative feedback on your work what does your inner voice say? Does it say, “That’s ok! I must need to learn more about this topic,” or does it say, “I must not be good at this!” if the answer was the first one then you probably have a growth mindset already. If your answer was the second then you may need to work on your inner voice to adjust it to a growth mindset. Try to embrace yourself without judgement when your inner voice speaks. Think about what you would say to a friend if they came to you with your situation. What would you say to them?
2. Embrace your imperfections. Our imperfections are what make us each unique. This is also an important act of self-love. Don’t seek approval from others and learn to trust yourself. An honestly, who cares what other people think! Comparison is the thief of joy!
3. Take risks despite fear. Fear is natural when learning something new. The difference between someone who has a fixed mindset and one that doesn’t is despite being afraid they choose to do it anyway. Consider the challenge as an opportunity to learn something new: a skill, something about yourself, etc.
4. Be realistic. You’re not going to get everything right the first time and chances are if you’re learning something new failure will happen. That’s ok. Failure is a great teacher. Instead of thinking as failures as a weakness, think of it as a lack of understanding that can be improved. How can you understand something deeper? Now, try again.
5. Look at examples. Look at your past examples of successful learning. Look at other peoples. What is something that you’re better at now that you weren’t in the past? How did it go from being difficult to easier? What did you do? Use others as examples. When was there a situation where you’ve seen someone else succeed against all odds? What did they do?
This list is by no means exhaustive but should be a starting point for if you’re trying to get started on improving your growth mindset. Continuous learning will not only better develop the growth mindset, it can shift your thinking to a more positive one. I always say that if you’re not good at something that just means you should be doing it more it. Chances are it’s something that you need to better develop. Challenging yourself in this way will teach you many things about who you are as you improve your “learn-it-all” mentality.
